PHOENIX  NFL commissioner Roger Goodell was pleased by the dialouge at the meetings and input from member clubs for the new player conduct policy that he is formulating. The commissioner has already promised less tolerance and stricter penalties — perhaps as much as year-long suspensions or permanent bans — for off-the-field trangressions.

Yet some team owners believe they should be given more authority to handle discipline of their players, rather than leaving punishment at the league level.

"I'm not looking for the responsibility," Goodell said. "I like the idea that clubs will take greater control of their clubs and the actions of their employees, including players. The thing Gene (Upshaw) wants is that there is consistency, that the policies and discipline are applied in a consistent fashion across all 32 teams, but also even within the teams, so that competitive issues may not be influences."

Goodell expects a new policy will be in place before the April 28-29 draft, but contends that it is "an ongoing process" that will likely include several revisions in the months and years ahead.

On Tuesday Goodell will hold hearings for two of the league's most notorious repeat police-blotter offenders — Tennessee Titans cornerback Pacman Jones and Cincinnati Bengals receiver Chris Henry. A ruling on their cases could come within 10 days of the hearings.

Bad vibes

Jeff Fisher can hardly catch a break. Controversy surrounding Pacman Jones has been all too consuming for the Tennessee Titans coach.

There's no such thing as out of sight, out of mind with Pacman's woes.

"From the standpoint when it becomes the first thing discussed in the morning and the last thing discussed in the evening," Fisher said, "it can be draining."

Fisher outlined his expectations of Jones during the offseason, which includes rehabiltation of a shoulder injury.

But the coach says he told Jones the rehab should "take place in off-hours in the facilities when his teammates weren't around."

The Vick challenge

Bobby Petrino isn't the first coach who would breathe easier if Michael Vick ran less.

The new Atlanta Falcons coach is just the latest to try inspiring a more efficient passing dimension from the quarterback.

"What I would like to change about Michael is his first instincts," Petrino said. "When he decides to take the game over and go win, it's to do it running the ball.

"I would like to have him say, 'OK, I'm going to take the game over. We got to win this, (but) I'm going to utilize my receivers, my running back,my tight end and build that trust within everybody so he understands we're going to get it done but we're going to utilize the players around me."

The Falcons had the NFL's lowest-ranked passing game in 2006, averaging just 148.2 yards per game through the air. Although Vick had a career-high 20 touchdown passes, he was inconsistent. Nineteen quarterbacks had better passer ratings than Vick (75.4).

But Vick set an NFL record for most rushing yards in a season by a quarterback with 1,039.

"He's still going to have the ability to take off and go," Petrino said. "We'd like that to be his third instinct instead of his first."

Petrino hopes that an offensive system that will allow Vick more freedom to call audibles than he's ever had will help sharpen his passing focus.

"That's my idea of how to train a quarterback," Petrino said. "You put it all on his shoulders and we'll go through our progressions."

Looking for Edge

As was his custom in Indianapolis and during his first year in the desert, Edgerrin James has been a no-show at the Arizona Cardinals' voluntary offseason workouts. James, who trains in Florida during the offseason, has always maintained that "voluntary" is just that — as stipulated in the CBA.

Still, after an upbeat phone conversation with James, new coach Ken Whisenhunt thinks the former All-Pro running back will break his typical offseason pattern and show up for voluntary sessions in April.

"I said, 'Edgerrin, I need you here,' " Whisenhunt reported.

"He said, 'I'm gonna be there coach. I've got my calendar.' "

"I said, 'Bring it in and we'll talk about it.' And that's all I can ask for."

Briefly

Here's one effect of 5-11: Washington Redskins coach Joe Gibbs has bought into pleas from players that they spend less time training at the team's headquarters during the offseason. "They said, 'Hey coach, we're kind of wore out. We'd like to spend more time working out maybe at some other places,' " said Gibbs, adding that there were still 39 players working at Redskin Park one day last week. "They said, 'Hey, put it on us and we'll show up ready to go. I'm going to kind of put it on them."…New Oakland Raiders coach Lane Kiffin disputes reports that he has gotten off to a rocky start with volatile receiver Randy Moss, which has fueled trade rumors for weeks. Kiffin says he expects Moss — whom he called the day after he was hired — will remain a Raider. Of that initial 15-minute conversation, Kiffin says, "No insults." … That Byron Leftwich hasn't been working out this offseason at the Jacksonville Jaguars' headquarters didn't stop coach Jack Del Rio from naming Leftwich as his starting quarterback. Del Rio said he wanted to move forward and "clear the air." Obviously, that was a statement Del Rio felt he needed to make after he essentially abandoned Leftwich and was seemingly ready to permanently hand the job to backup David Garrard— who was unable to seize the opportunity. "The biggest thing is for the team to understand the direction we're taking," Del Rio said. "We really don't want to have a circus atmosphere." … Chiefs coach Herm Edwards says a commitment to second-year quarterback Brodie Croyle is at the heart of the decision to discuss trading Trent Green to the Miami Dolphins. "We've got to find some way to get the young guy the reps," Edwards said. "How do we do that? That's very difficult to orchestrate. Really, the future is with the young guy."

OWNERS' MEETING WRAPUP

A summary look of the items considered at the NFL owners'
meetings in Arizona:

Issue

Outcome

Notes

Player-conduct policy

Postponed

Commissioner Roger Goodell expects to announce
the policy at some point in April.

Overtime change

Tabled

Would move the kickoff from the 30-yard line
to the 35-yard line at the start of overtime. Aimed at getting the team
that loses the coin toss a fairer shot in the extra frame.

Revenue sharing

Adopted

Owners agreed to establish a pool of previously
unshared revenue for lower-grossing teams to draw from and help pay for
costs associated with CBA.

Excessive demonstrations penalty

Adopted

Players who spike or throw the football anywhere
except for in the end zone are now subject to a 5-yard penalty.

Replay rule

Adopted

The rule authorizing video review was made
permanent.

Replay tweaks

Adopted

Plays where a ballcarrier is determined "down
by contact" are now reviewable. And the time limit for officials' review
was reduced from 90 to 60 seconds.

Defensive communication

Rejected

Would have enabled defensive coaches to communicate
electronically with one designated player, as offensive coaches can with
quarterbacks.

Assistant coaches interviews

Adopted

Teams will now have a second window during
Super Bowl week to interview assistants for head coaching vacancies.

Game-day roster size

Rejected

Would have increased the size of the game-day
roster from 45 to 47 players.

Pass interference

Withdrawn

Would have created two degrees of the penalty
-- one a spot foul and one a 15-yard infraction.

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